Vladimir Stoupel is a musician with an extraordinarily rich range of sound and emotion. He ventures to the extreme limits of expression with an intensity that sweeps his listeners off their feet. His symphonic thinking lends an orchestral dimension to his piano playing.
His complete recording of the Scriabin Sonatas won him, among other awards, the Luxembourg “Excellentia” prize. The international press has described his concerts as “pianistic fireworks” (Washington Post) and “outstanding interpretation” (Der Tagesspiegel Berlin).
Vladimir Stoupel is often recognized as the instigator and organizer of programs that break away from conventional programming, where his aim is to restore unjustly forgotten masterpieces to their rightful place, and to highlight their high musical qualities in interaction with well-known works of the repertoire.
He is invited to offer his exclusive contribution at major international festivals, such as the Schleswig-Holstein Musikfestival, the “Piano en Valois” Festival (France), the “Brandenburgischen Sommerkonzerte”, the “Printemps des Arts” in Monte-Carlo, the Helsinki Festival, the “La Grange de Meslay” Festival in Tours (France) and the “Bargemusic” in New York. With violinist Judith Ingolfsson, he is co-artistic director and founder of the international festival “Aigues-Vives en Musiques” (France) and co-artistic director of the international festival “The Last Rose Of Summer” in Berlin.
As a soloist, Vladimir Stoupel is invited by leading orchestras such as the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, the Berlin Konzerthaus Orchestra, the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, the Bavarian Broadcasting Symphony Orchestra, the Berlin German Symphony Orchestra, the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, the Bavarian Broadcasting Symphony Orchestra, the German Symphony Orchestra Berlin, the Berlin Broadcasting Symphony Orchestra, the Weimar National Orchestra, the Mainz National Orchestra, the Kassel National Philharmonic Orchestra and the Lancaster Symphony Orchestra. He works with conductors such as Christian Thielemann, Michail Jurowski, Leopold Hager, Marek Janowski, Steven Sloane, Stefan Malzew, Patrik Ringborg and Günther Neuhold. Vladimir Stoupel has performed in the most famous concert halls, such as the Berlin Philharmonic and Konzerthaus, Avery Fisher Hall in New York, the National Gallery in Washington DC, the Grosse Musikhalle in Hamburg and the Konzerthaus in Dortmund, to name but a few.
His extensive discography covers a wide range of styles and periods, including, for example, piano works by Shostakovich (RPC, 1988), the complete piano works of Arnold Schönberg (auris subtilis, 2001), chamber music by Schumann and Brahms (auris subtilis, 2002), the complete sonatas of Alexander Scriabin (Audite, 2008) and a selection of 20th-century piano music (EDA 2007). His recording of the complete works for viola and piano by Henri Vieuxtemps with violist Thomas Selditz won the renowned Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik (German Record Industry Critics’ Prize). His three “Concert-Centenaire” CDs, recorded with violinist Judith Ingolfsson, featuring works by Albéric Magnard, Rudi Stephan, Louis Vierne and Gabriel Fauré were released on the Accentus Music label in 2016. They were awarded the Centenaire label by the French government and received international critical acclaim; the Fauré CD was nominated for the 2017 International Classical Music Awards.
In 2017, he released, also with Judith Ingolfsson, the CD Blues, Blanc, Rouge, featuring Sonatas by Ravel, Ferroud and Poulenc. This CD was nominated for the Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik 2018 and the International Classical Music Awards 2019. His CD with the Piano Sonatas by Rathaus and Shostakovich, released in 2020, won the Supersonic Prize in Luxembourg and was nominated for the Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik 2021 and the International Classical Music Awards 2020. In 2021, the Ingolfsson-Stoupel Duo released another critically acclaimed CD: Sonatas for violin and piano by Rathaus, Tiessen and Arma. This CD has been nominated for the International Classical Music Awards 2021. In recent years, Vladimir Stoupel has also made a name for himself as a conductor. He regularly conducts chamber operas at the Konzerthaus Berlin, and works with the Berlin Symphony Orchestra, the Mainz State Philharmonic Orchestra, the Czech Chamber Philharmonic, the Neubrandenburg Philharmonic and the Polish Chamber Philharmonic, the Kammerphilharmonie Berlin, the Orquesta Sinfonica de Cuidad d’Oviedo, the Mendelssohn Chamber Orchestra Leipzig (Germany), the Reykjavik Chamber Orchestra (Iceland), the Orchestre philharmonique de Marseille and the Orchestre symphonique des jeunes de Cantabrie (Spain), among others. Since 2012, he has conducted regular concerts with the Brandenburg State Orchestra Frankfurt. Released in 2020, his recording of Weinberg’s opera Mazel-Tov! (Our Congratulations!) with the Kammerphilharmonie Potsdam, became a finalist in the prestigious International Classical Music Awards 2021.
In the realm of education, Vladimir Stoupel currently serve as a permanent guest lecturer at the Icelandic Arts Academy and on the piano faculty of the Ascent Music Festival in Cincinnati.
Since 2018, he is conducting regular masterclasses at the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, as part of the Duo Ingolfsson-Stoupel’s residency.
Over the past 35 years, he has maintained a private piano studio in Paris, New York, and Berlin, focusing on preparing young pianists for auditions and competitions, as well as guiding emerging professionals at the outset of their performing careers. His responsibilities have extended to conducting numerous masterclasses in Europe, Iceland, China, and the United States, often in conjunction with his performances.
Additionally, he serves as Artistic Director for several festivals, including the Jewish Cultural Days in Berlin and the Festival Last Rose of Summer in Berlin, as well as the Festival Aigues-Vives en Musiques in Aigues- Vives, France, where his responsibilities encompass solo piano and chamber music repertoire.
A French citizen since 1985, Vladimir Stoupel currently makes his home in Berlin and in Baltimore. In 2022 he was awarded a French Order “Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres”.